Echoes from the Past

The crash reverberated through the building, its suddenness tearing through the suffocating silence. Alex turned toward the hallway, his flashlight trembling in his hand. His heart pounded in his chest, and a quick glance at his friends showed the same unease reflected on their faces.

"What the hell was that?" Chris whispered, his voice tight.

"Probably just… something falling," Taylor offered, though his usual bravado was noticeably absent.

"That's what people say in every horror movie," Emma said, her voice shaky. "And then they die."

"Stop," Jordan said firmly, cutting through their rising panic. Her tone was calm, but the way her eyes darted toward the darkened hallway betrayed her own nerves. "It's probably nothing. Let's check it out."

"Check it out?" Emma hissed. "Are you serious? Why would we do that? That's how everyone dies in the movies."

"Because we're not leaving until we know what's going on," Alex said, surprising even himself with how steady his voice sounded.

"For the record, I hate this." Taylor muttered.

They moved as a group, sticking close together as they retraced their steps down the dim hallway. The beam of Alex's flashlight swept over the walls, catching glimpses of peeling paint and faded certificates. Every step seemed to echo louder than the last, the silence pressing in around them like a physical weight.

When they reached the main hallway, they froze.

A filing cabinet that had been upright moments ago now lay toppled on its side, papers scattered across the floor like fallen leaves.

"That wasn't like that before," Alex said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Chris leaned closer, inspecting the cabinet. "Maybe it just fell? The building's old. Stuff shifts."

"Yeah, maybe," Jordan said, though her tone lacked conviction.

As they stood there, something caught Alex's attention. One of the papers lying on the ground had been torn in half, the edges jagged as if ripped by force.

"What is that?" Emma asked, pointing.

Alex picked it up carefully. It was an old invoice, the ink faded and smudged, but the thing that caught his attention was the handwriting scrawled across the bottom in large, jagged letters.

"GET OUT."

The words sent a chill racing down his spine.

"Okay," Taylor said, backing up. "I'm officially done. Let's leave. Right now."

"Wait," Alex said, his eyes scanning the hallway. "Someone's here."

"Someone?" Chris asked, frowning.

"Or something," Emma muttered under her breath, her hands visibly shaking.

A loud thud echoed from deeper in the building, followed by the sound of something dragging across the floor.

"Tell me you heard that," Jordan said, her voice low.

"We all heard it," Chris muttered, his flashlight darting toward the sound.

Alex tightened his grip on his own flashlight, his palms slick with sweat. "It came from the office at the end of the hall."

"Nope," Taylor said, already turning toward the exit. "No way. I'm not going in there."

"Taylor, wait," Jordan said, grabbing his arm. "We have to figure out what's going on."

"I don't care what's going on," he shot back. "I care about getting out of here alive!"

As if in response, the lights flickered overhead, the ancient wiring buzzing faintly before plunging them into darkness.

"Turn on the remaining flashlights," Alex said quickly, moving the beam of his already lit flashlight in an attempt to cover everything unseen.

Their small circle of light felt like a weak defense against the oppressive shadows that now seemed to writhe along the walls.

"Why is it colder?" Emma whispered, hugging herself.

"I don't know," Chris said. "But I don't like it."

A soft creak broke the silence, like a door slowly opening.

They turned as one, their flashlights converging on the office at the end of the hall. The door was ajar, swinging gently as if beckoning them inside.

"Alex," Jordan said, her voice steady but quiet. "Are you sure about this?"

He hesitated, the weight of her question pressing down on him. But then he thought about the letter, about Tobias's handwriting and the impossible implications.

"I have to be," he said finally.

They moved toward the office, each step feeling heavier than the last. The air grew colder, the faint smell of mildew now joined by something sharper, almost metallic.

When they reached the doorway, Alex hesitated. His flashlight beam swept across the room, illuminating the overturned desk, the scattered papers, the shadows that seemed to twist unnaturally against the walls.

"Who's in here?" he called, his voice echoing in the emptiness.

No response.

The door slammed shut behind them with such force that the walls seemed to tremble. Emma screamed, and Taylor stumbled backward, nearly knocking over a filing cabinet but stumbling into Chris, causing both their flashlights to fall and go out.

"What the hell?" Chris muttered, spinning around to face the door. He grabbed the handle and twisted, but it wouldn't budge. "It's locked!"

"Locked?" Alex said, his breath coming faster. "It doesn't even have a lock!"

"Tell that to the door!" Chris shot back, pulling harder.

"Stop yelling," Jordan snapped, her voice cutting through the panic. "Everyone, just… stay calm."

The words had barely left her mouth when the room was plunged into silence; a silence so complete it was almost deafening.

Then, a whisper.

Faint at first, like the rustle of leaves, but growing louder. It came from everywhere and nowhere at once, words that were impossible to make out.

"What is that?" Emma whispered, clutching her arms tightly.

"It's just the wind," Taylor said, though he sounded like he was trying to convince himself.

"There's no wind," Alex said, his voice flat.

The whispering grew louder, turning into a low, guttural murmur. It seemed to crawl along the walls, circling them like a predator stalking its prey.

"Who's there?" Alex shouted, his flashlight darting across the room.

The whispering stopped abruptly, leaving an oppressive stillness in its wake. Then came the sound of footsteps; slow, deliberate, and impossibly heavy, as if whoever was making them was dragging something behind them.

"Okay," Taylor said, backing toward the corner. "This is officially the worst idea we've ever had."

The footsteps grew louder, but there was no one there. The floorboards creaked under invisible weight, moving closer and closer until they stopped directly in front of Alex.

He held his breath, his flashlight trembling in his hands.

The beam flickered.

"Alex," Jordan said softly, her voice tight with fear.

"I see it," he whispered.

The flashlight flickered again, then went out completely.

"Turn it back on!" Emma hissed, her voice bordering on hysteria.

"I'm trying!" Alex said, shaking the flashlight. It sputtered to life for a brief moment, casting jagged shadows across the room before plunging them into darkness again.

"Everyone, stay close," Jordan said, her voice steady despite the tremor Alex could hear underneath.

A loud crash shattered the silence, and the room was suddenly alive with noise. Papers flew into the air, scattering like a flurry of leaves. A chair slid across the floor, its legs screeching against the wood.

"WHAT IS HAPPENING?" Taylor yelled, his back pressed against the wall.

"No one move!" Jordan said sharply, her command cutting through the chaos.

But the chaos didn't stop.

The noise subsided just as suddenly as it had begun, leaving the room eerily still once more. Alex's flashlight flickered back to life, the dim beam revealing the mess that had overtaken the office.

Papers were strewn everywhere, the desk overturned, the calendar on the wall torn from its nail.

And then Alex saw it.

"Look," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

The others followed his gaze, their flashlights converging on the far wall. Scrawled in jagged, uneven letters was a single word, written in what looked like soot or ash:

"LEAVE."

Emma whimpered, and even Chris looked unnerved.

"Who… who wrote that?" Emma asked, her voice trembling.

"No one," Jordan said, her eyes scanning the room. "There's no one here."

"Exactly," Taylor said, his voice shaking. "And that's the problem."

Alex took a step closer to the wall, his pulse racing. The word seemed to pulse in the dim light, its edges smudged like it had been written in a hurry.

"It wasn't here before," he said.

"No kidding," Chris muttered.

A low groan echoed through the room, the sound vibrating through the floorboards. It was deep and resonant, like the building itself was alive.

"Okay," Taylor said, throwing his hands up. "That's it. I'm done. We're leaving."

"The door's still locked," Chris pointed out grimly.

"Then we'll break it down!" Taylor snapped.

"Wait," Alex said, holding up a hand.

"For what?" Taylor asked, his voice rising. "For whatever's doing this to kill us?"

"Just… wait," Alex said again, his flashlight trained on the far corner of the room.

Something moved.

A shadow, darker than the others, shifted against the wall. It was subtle, almost imperceptible, but it was there.

"There," Alex whispered, pointing.

The others turned their remaining flashlights toward the corner, but there was nothing there.

And then the door creaked open.

Slowly, agonizingly slowly, it swung inward, revealing a figure standing in the doorway.

Alex's breath caught in his throat as the figure stepped into the light.